T.G.I.M.! 2-14

Let the NFL offseason commence...

It’s been one very long week since we were last graced with NFL football so I guess the offseason is officially here and with it, the standard set of troubles that come with young men with tons of money, an attitude and too much time on their hands. Oh, and for the record, I’m talking legal troubles of course. It seems like we can’t go an entire offseason without a handful of these ‘stars’ ending up in someone’s lineup (and I mean police lineup in this regard) and if this past week is any indication, this summers going to be a doozy.

First up in this edition of COPS: NFL Edition, we have Washington Redskins defensive headache Albert Haynesworth. Haynesworth, as many will recall, has been a frequent visitor to this sports page this year thanks to his ongoing feud with head coach Mike Shannahan. Apparently, this season left the 29 year old Haynesworth with a little leftover anger which he idiotically channeled against an unsuspecting motorist earlier this month.

According to police reports, Albert Haynesworth has been formally charged with misdemeanor assault stemming from what police say was an alleged road-rage encounter in which he threw a punch at a fellow motorist in a Washington, D.C., suburb. The incident took place on February 2nd where a 38 year old man told investigators he was assaulted by the driver of a pickup truck (Haynesworth) who was tailgating him.

Now if only Haynesworth showed this much fire on the field last season!

Next up on our plate is Oakland Raiders running back Michael Bush. Bush, who ran for 655 yards and eight touchdowns on 158 carries last season, was booked early Saturday morning at the Clark County Jail on suspicion of drunken driving in Clarksville, Ind., according to the San Jose Mercury News. This incident, while pretty tame in comparison to, say, shooting yourself in the leg at a night club or attempting to punch out a man you were tailgating, is a common occurrence among NFL players and will be one repeated quite a few times this summer among NFL players.

Our last stop today takes us full circle as we return to Washington where undrafted rookie kick returner Brandon Banks was assaulted and stabbed outside of a nightclub early Saturday. Banks received a surface wound to his side that required stitches when he and a friend was attacked by a man wielding a knife. Apparently, Banks and his friend got in a verbal altercation with the accused which escalated with the man pulling a knife and attacking the duo.

The suspect — Jason Shorter, 24, of Lanham, Md. — was arrested and charged with assault with intent to kill, police said.

Again, it should be noted that we are only ONE WEEK into the offseason so while these incidents may seem trivial to some, they could spell a dangerous trend this summer for the NFL.